Ghostbusters: What Does The Future Hold?

Before his untimely death, Harold Ramis spent years trying to get a third Ghostbusters movie off the ground. Sony wouldn’t green-light his project, however, and so a third Ghostbusters film never came to pass. Instead, Sony waited until Ramis was dead and proceeded to green-light a reboot before the man’s body was even cold.

Look, I’m going to be perfectly up front with all of you on this one. I hated the Ghostbusters reboot. The reboot of Ghostbusters was an absolute mess and that’s being generous as far as I’m concerned. But aside from that, it was simply a reboot that had no business existing. I’m sorry, but there are certain movies you simply don’t remake. If it ain’t broke, don’t break it. You don’t see Robert Zemeckis trying to remake Back To The Future for a quick buck, do you?

Well, despite Ghostbusters (2016) doing poorly at the box office, Ivan Reitman and Sony are still mulling around ideas to get a sequel going. Hold on, I’m just gonna do some math below this sentence, I hope you don’t mind:

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 – over $5 million in profit after marketing and budget return… No Sequel

Ghostbusters (2016) – $65 million in profit after marketing and budget return… Sequel and Multiple Spinoffs

You see? You see what I’m talking about here? This is Sony logic for you. Forget the leaked emails from a few years ago, THIS is why this company is pretty much a joke at this point. Oh, and how is Spider-Man: Homecoming doing over at Marvel Studios? 61% box office drop in its second weekend, you say? Lowest second weekend in MCU history, you say? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Therefore, you keep making those “smart” business decisions, Sony! Thumbs Up!

In addition, it’s no secret that Sony is planning to build a Ghostbusters Cinematic Universe. This has been on the table for Sony for awhile and they are taking full advantage. Why they are doing this with Ghostbusters is a complete mystery to us all but, as I said, that’s Sony logic. However, it will apparently not just consist of live-action films. The next Ghostbusters film will be an animated film, followed by more live-action films down the line. Will they be separate continuities? No! All of them will connect, including the original films from the 80’s. Not sure how this makes any sense considering the actors from the original all made cameos as different people in the reboot but who am I to question this insanity? Sony is clearly trying to have its Twinkie and eat it too, only the Twinkie has mysteriously expired. Weird, right?

In regards to the future of the series, Ivan Reitman had this to say;

“We jumped into an animated film [after the last movie] and we are developing live-action films. I want to bring all these stories together as a universe that makes sense within itself. Part of my job right now is to do that.”

Now, I want to say right off the bat; I love and respect Ivan Reitman. Reitman’s made some wonderful movies and the original Ghostbusters films would not be what they were without him. Furthermore, I respect him for trying to keep his old franchise alive. After all, Harold Ramis wanted to keep it alive through a third film. I feel like, out of all those involved, Reitman is the one who has his heart in the right place. However, Ghostbusters is a classic film at this point. It’s a film by which many comedies today are judged. There are not many comedies out there that you can call perfect but Ghostbusters certainly is one of them. Making a cinematic universe just sort of cheapens that. It makes Ghostbusters feel like a cash-grab, company mandated franchise instead of the unique beast it once was.

An animated film could work and, if I’m being honest, it could be great. Both The Real Ghostbusters and Extreme Ghostbusters carried on the continuity of the first two films and both shows simply rocked. But if it ties in with a reboot that completely missed the point of what made Ghostbusters so unique in the first place, it’s almost certainly doomed to fail in my opinion. I can see this animated film being good on its own or even in continuity with the original films. However, as part of a giant cinematic super beast franchise, I don’t see that boding well for them. You can have nice small franchises consisting of truly great movies. The most recent Planet Of The Apes reboot trilogy is a prime example of this. But I’m sorry Sony, not every franchise needs to be Marvel. Nor does anyone want every franchise to be Marvel.

So with an animated film coming next and more live-action films on the way, what else could possibly be happening. Well, a cartoon centered around Slimer and his girl Slimer from the reboot is reportedly in the works. I’m sure kids will love that. There have also been talks about bringing Harold Ramis’ Egon back by the use of CGI… wait, what? Yes, apparently when asked if they could bring back Harold Ramis’ via the CG techniques demonstrated in Rogue One, Reitman responded thusly;

Honestly, I don’t even know how to respond to this news. It’s bad enough Ramis died before he could see another Ghostbusters film come to fruition but bringing him back via CGI… I’m a bit skeptical about that. Then again, if they do go through with it, I can only hope that it is in a respectful manner that honors the man’s memory. Above is a picture of Ramis and his daughter, Violet Ramis Stiel, taken during the production of the first Ghostbusters film. When confronted with the news of possibly putting her deceased father into one of the movies via CGI, she gave this statement:

“It’s bizarre. Personally, for me, it is hard to imagine that people would accept it, but who knows. The technology now is amazing,” she said.“I try to think what would he have thought. If it’s great and it works, then good. And if there is a problem, then obviously no.”

I agree with Violet in the sense that it is bizarre. Then again, it was also a bit bizarre to see Peter Cushing brought back to life in Rogue One. Personally, I found the CGI for Tarkin in that film to be seamless. You could swear Cushing was really standing there. However, I think what helped make it work was that the screen-time of the character was very limited. If he had been there throughout the film, it probably would have felt a bit off and jarring. Therefore, if they do decide to do this CGI thing with Ramis, I can only hope it’s a cameo that I can appreciate. As she puts it, if it works then good but if there are problems then don’t bother.

A graduate of Full Sail University with a Bachelors Degree in Creative Writing, Adam is a Writer and Film Critic, looking to make his mark on the world. When he isn’t at the movies, writing for The Nerd Stash, playing Duck Hunt (respect the classics) or delivering pizzas to his neighbors, he is back at school earning his Masters Degree in Film Production.